Weekend Box Office Report: Big Debut For 'Big Hero 6'
By Bill Wine
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It was Interstellar versus Big Hero 6 as the weekend's two new multiplex attractions, courting decidedly different target audiences, battled for box office supremacy.
And it was Big Hero 6, the animated adventure, that finished first by earning an estimated $56-million on its debut weekend.
Also opening impressively was the runner-up, Interstellar, director Christopher Nolan's science fiction epic starring Matthew McConaughey, which took in $50-million on its debut weekend.
That dropped Nightcrawler, last weekend's champ by default, all the way down to the sixth spot, where it finished behind Gone Girl, Ouija, and St. Vincent, each of which totaled in the modest neighborhood of $6-million.
Although last year's industry-wide totals were slightly higher, this year's unofficial kickoff to the big holiday movie season was seen as a success, thanks to the strong two-horse race being run by the two new titles.
